Green Bay Packers 38 (2-2), Chicago Bears 17 (2-2)
During the week, Aaron Rodgers told everyone in Packer land to “R-E-L-A-X”. Rodgers gave them good reason to, leading Green Bay to a 38-17 drubbing of NFC North rival Chicago.
But the Bears started fast, going 80 yards in 15 plays, finishing with a Jay Cutler pass to a wide open Brandon Marshall from six yards out with 6:30 left in first quarter. Green Bay answered quickly, going 81 yards in six plays, with Eddie Lacy running it in from two yards out to tie it with 4:08 left.
Following a Robbie Gould field goal, Rodgers began his magnificent day, finding Jordy Nelson for a three yard touchdown to give Green Bay a 14-10 lead with 10:11 left in the second quarter. The Bears got back on top, as Cutler found Alshon Jeffery from 8 yards out with just under four minutes remaining to make it 17-14.
Rodgers continued to torch Chicago, finding Randall Cobb for a 22 yard touchdown with just over a minute left in the half to give the Packers a 21-17 halftime lead that they would not relinquish. Following a Mason Crosby field goal and Clay Matthews interception of Cutler, Rodgers and Nelson found the endzone again on an 11 yard connection to take a commanding 31-17 advantage with 4:28 left in the third quarter.
Green Bay sealed it, with Rodgers again finding Cobb, this time on a three yard TD pass with 14:52 left to make it 38-17. Rodgers was 22 of 28 for 302 yards and four touchdowns, while Cobb caught seven passes for 113 yards and two touchdowns and Nelson had 10 grabs for 108 yards and two touchdowns.
The turnover prone Jay Cutler returned after a couple-week absence, as he was intercepted twice along with his two touchdowns on a day where he went 22 of 34 for 256 yards. Tight end Martellus Bennett led Chicago with nine grabs for 134 yards, while Matt Forte had 122 yards rushing and 49 yard receiving, as Jeffery and Marshall were held to a combined 6 catches for 58 yards.
Rodgers became the fourth fastest quarterback to pass 25,000 yards through the air in his career (behind Dan Marino, Peyton Manning, and Kurt Warner). This game was also the first in the NFL since 2007 in which neither time punted.
Houston Texans 23 (3-1), Buffalo Bills 17 (2-2)
In a matchup against his former team, Ryan Fitzpatrick was aided greatly by J.J. Watt and the Texans defense, as Houston defeated Buffalo, 23-17.
The Bills put the first points on the board, as Dan Carpenter hit a 31 yard field goal with 11:37 left in the second quarter. Less than two minutes later, a promosing Texans drive ended when Andre Johnson fumbled and Da’Norris Searcy recovered the ball for Buffalo.
Eight plays later, E.J. Manuel found rookie receiver Sammy Watkins for a touchdown from five yards out to give Buffalo a 10-0 lead. But with 57 seconds left, Houston wideout DeAndre Hopkins, a teammate of Watkins at Clemson, got open and caught a 35 yard strike from Fitzpatrick to put the Texans within 3 at halftime.
On the first play of the second half, Fitzpatrick’s pass was tipped and intercepted by linebacker Nigel Bradham at Houston’s 20 yard line. Three plays later, however, Watt, who had nine hits on Manuel, leaped in front of the quarterback’s pass, caught it, and ran it 79 yards for a touchdown to give the Texans a 14-10 lead.
A pair of Randy Bullock field goals made it a 20-10 game with 9:21 left in game, with Buffalo not having scored on seven straight possessions. With pressure early, Manuel escaped the pocket and found a wide-open Mike Williams behind the defense for an 80 yard touchdown on the first play of the drive to get Buffalo within 3 with just over nine minutes remaining.
The Bills had a chance to win the game, getting down to the Texans’ 41 yard line with 1:14 left, but Manuel threw a pass into triple coverage that was intercepted by Daryl Morris, sealing the win for Houston. Fitzpatrick went 25 of 37 for 268 yards, a touchdown and two interceptions, while Manuel was 21 of 44 for 225 yards and two interceptions.
Bob McNair on JJ Watt: "worth every cent." Then he adds, "I hope he doesn't come in tomorrow and ask for a raise." #Texans
Indianapolis Colts 41 (2-2), Tennessee Titans (1-3)
Andrew Luck continued what could be a career year for him, leading the Colts to a 41-17 blowout victory over the Titans in Tennessee.
A 37 yard pass from Luck to T.Y. Hilton set up a one-yard touchdown run by Trent Richardson to make it 7-0 with 7:06 left in 1st quarter. In the final minute of the first quarter, Luck found tight end Dwayne Allen from 7 yards out to double the lead for Indianapolis.
After a pair of Colts field goals by Adam Vinatieri and one for the Titans by Ryan Succop in the second quarter, Luck was intercepted at his own 32 by Wesley Woodyard in the final minute, who took it to the 25. Charlie Whitehurst, starting for the injured Jake Locker, threw a 7 yard touchdown pass to tight end Delanie Walker, to cut the lead to 20-10 before half.
But Indianapolis’ offense kicked into high gear, as Luck found Reggie Wayne for a 28 yard touchdown with 8:15 left in third, and then went to Coby Fleener from two yards out four minutes later to give the Colts an insurmountable 34-10 advantage. Tennessee did have rookie running Bishop Sankey score from two yards on a run play in the last minute of the third quarter to make it 34-17.
In the fourth quarter, though, Luck threw to Ahmad Bradshaw, who ran it in from 15 yards out for the game’s final score, 41-17. Luck was 29 of 41 for 393 yards, four touchdowns and one interception, with Wayne catching 7 for 119 yards and Hilton collecting 6 grabs for 105 yards.
Whitehurst struggled in his first regular season action since 2011, going 12 of 23 for 177 yards, a touchdown and an interception.
Andrew Luck’s 13 TD’s thru 1st 4 games is a Colts record (Peyton had 11 in 2 seasons)
Steve Smith further proved that the Carolina Panthers made a mistake letting him go, helping lead the Baltimore Ravens to a 38-10 shellacking of his former team.
Smith began the scoring by gathering a pass tipped by tight end Owen Daniels and taking it 61 yards into the end zone with 13:12 left in the second quarter. The Panthers answered, as Cam Newton found Smith’s replacement, rookie stud Kelvin Benjamin, for a 28 yard touchdown with 8:35 left in the half.
But from there, it was nearly all Ravens, as starting running back Justin Forsett ran it in from 11 yards out with under six minutes left in the half. Then in the final two minutes of the half, Smith struck again, as Joe Flacco fired a 21 strike to Smith in the end zone, making it 21-7 with 1:53 remaining in the half, a score that would remain at halftime.
Another Smith struck for Baltimore, as Torrey Smith scored from 24 yards out with just under 10 minutes remaining in the third quarter to put the Ravens ahead three touchdowns. With three and a half minutes left in the quarter, Graham Gano hit a 37 yard field goal to cut the lead to 28-10.
But the Panthers were done for good when rookie running back Lorenzo Taliaferro scored from one yard out with 11:34 remaining in game to put the score at 35-10. Flacco was 22 of 31 for 327 yards and three touchdowns, while Steve Smith caught 7 passes for 139 yards and two touchdowns.
Cam Newton was only 14 of 25 for 197 yards and a touchdown. In the past two games, both against AFC North teams, Carolina has been outscored 75-19.
Detroit Lions 24, New York Jets 17
Despite only 2 catches for 12 yards by star receiver Calvin Johnson, the Lions’ passing game was lethal enough to give Detroit a 24-17 win over the New York Jets in the Meadowlands.
After the teams exchanged field goals in the first quarter, Matt Stafford went to work, finding receiver Jeremy Ross on a 59 yard pass for a score with 6:19 left in the second quarter. Then, Stafford ended a five play, 47 yard drive with a 16 yard touchdown pass to rookie tight end Eric Ebron with just 22 seconds left in the half to take a 17-3 advantage into halftime.
Following boos from the home crowd, the Jets got their offense going, with Geno Smith leading New York 74 yards on 11 plays, and finding Eric Decker from an 11 yard touchdown to cut the lead in half, 17-10. But Stafford took the Lions 90 yards on 14 plays, and ran it in on the first play of the fourth quarter from a yard out to again double the lead.
With just under seven minutes, Chris Johnson took a handoff 34 yards to the house to again make it a one-score game, 24-17. But the Jets would get no closer, as Stafford’s stellar 24 of 34 for 293 yard and two touchdown performance was enough for Detriot to get the win.
In Johnson’s mostly absent day due to an ankle injury, Golden Tate stepped up with 8 catches for 116 yards. Geno Smith struggled once again, going 17 of 33 for 209 yards, a touchdown, an interception, and a lost fumble, already giving him eight turnovers on the season.
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 27 (1-3), Pittsburgh Steelers (24)
Ten days after one of the most embarassing performances in recent memory, the Buccaneers got the upset of the early portion of the day, defeating the Steelers in Pittsburgh 27-24.
Tampa Bay started quickly, as a Ben Roethlisberger fumble was recovered inside the Steelers’ 10. Two plays later, new starting quarterback Mike Glennon found rookie wideout Mike Evans on a seven yard touchdown.
After the teams exchanged field goals, Roethlisberger went to Antonio Brown, who scored from 11 yards out at the end of the first quarter to tie the game at 10. Brown and Roethlisberger connected again with just under five minutes remaining in the half from 27 yards out to give Pittsburgh its first lead, 17-10 at halftime.
After missing a couple of weeks due to injury, running back Doug Martin tied the game for Tampa Bay, running into the endzone from three yards out with 12:27 left in the fourth quarter. But with just under eight minutes left in the third quarter, Roethlisberger got the ball to reliable tight end Heath Miller in the endzone on a five yard pass to make it 24-17.
In the fourth quarter, a pair of possessions that went into the redzone resulted in only three points for Tampa Bay. However, Glennon got the ball back with 40 seconds left from Pittsbrugh’s 46 yard line with a chance to win it.
On 2nd and 10, Glennon got the ball to an open Louis Murphy, who ran 41 yards to the Pittsburgh 5. Three plays later, Glennon went to Vincent Jackson, who dove for a game-winning grab with just 7 seconds remaining.
Glennon was 21 of 42 for 302 yards, two touchdowns and an interception, with Murphy finishing with 6 grabs for 99 yards. Roethlisberger played well in defeat, completing 29 of 40 for 31 yards and three touchdowns and a lost fumble, while Brown led the Steelers with 7 catches for 131 yards and his two touchdowns.
Miami Dolphins 38 (2-2), Oakland Raiders 14 (0-4)
At the beginning of the week, Ryan Tannehill’s hold on the starting job was questioned. But 38 consecutive points by the Dolphins ended that talk for a week, with Miami beating Oakland in London, 38-14.
Oakland started fast, though, as rookie quarterback Derek Carr finished a 1o play, 74 yard opening drive with a three yard touchdown pass to Brian Leonhardt to make it 7-0 with 9:38 remaining in first quarter.
Down 7-3 to start the second quarter, Miami would soon start to impose their will, as Tannehill found Mike Wallace for a 13 yard touchdown less than a minute into the second stanza. Five minutes later, Lamar Miller ran for a touchdown from nine yards out to give the Dolphins a 17-7 lead.
With just under two minutes remaining in the half, Tannehill counted his great play, throwing to a wide open Dion Sims from 18 yards out to make it 24-7 at halftime. Tannehill was 17 of 19 in the first half for over 200 yards passing and two touchdowns.
Miami continued to dominate, with Miller running in from a yard out with 8:13 left in the third quarter, and Cortland Finnegan returned a fumble 50 yards to effectively end Oakland’s chances. In the third quarter, Carr suffered an MCL sprain and high-ankle sprain on a run, ending his day and making the Raiders go to Matt McGloin, who threw a touchdown pass in the fourth quarter to Andre Holmes.
Derek Carr tells reporters after the game he suffered an MCL sprain and high-ankle sprain in Oakland's loss in London
Tannehill finished 23 of 31 for 278 yards, two touchdowns and an interception. Miller went for 64 yards and two scores as well. Carr was 16 of 25 for 146 yards, a touchdown and an interception.
San Diego Chargers 33 (3-1), Jacksonville Jaguars 14 (0-4)
Blake Bortles started very well but couldn’t finish, as Philip Rivers played an elite game and led a depleted San Diego team to a 33-14 victory over still-winless Jacksonville.
The Chargers scored first, as Nick Novak made a 33 yard field goal to make it 3-0 with 3:44 left in the first quarter. But Bortles then lead a 10 play, 68 yard drive that ended in a one-yard touchdown run for Toby Gerhart, giving Jacksonville it’s first lead since Week 1, 7-3 with 14:06 left in the half.
Rivers then went to work, finding Eddie Royal for a 47 yard touchdown pass with 11:24 remaining in the second quarter. Bortles answered with a two yard touchdown pass to tight end Nic Jacobs, who joined the team this week after being on the New Orleans Saints’ practice squad, to take the lead back, 14-10, with 7:17 to go in the half.
Royal and Rivers connected deep again, this time from 43 yards away with under a minute left in the first half to take a 17-14 halftime lead. The Chargers’ offense continued to go through the Jaguars’ defense, as Rivers found Malcom Floyd on a 24 yard pass to the endzone to give the team a ten-point lead.
Three more Novak field goals were the final scores of the game. Rivers was 29 of 39 for 377 yards and three touchdowns, with Keenan Allen finishing with 10 grabs for 135 yards, and Royal five catches for 105 yards and his two touchdowns.
Bortles started the game 13 0f 15 for 128 yards and a touchdown, but ended up 29 of 37 for 253 yards and two interceptions.
#Chargers QB Philip Rivers has passed Phil Simms in Career Passing yards. Now ranks 26th All-Time in #NFL History
41 Minnesota Vikings (2-2), Atlanta Falcons 28 (2-2)
Teddy Bridgewater had a great first career start, but it ended abrubtly and shockingly with an ankle injury in the fourth quarter on Minnesota’s way to a 41-28 upset victory over Atlanta.
Fox sideline reporter says Teddy Bridgewater has a sprained ankle and X-rays were negative.
Bridgewater led the Vikings an on 8 play, 73 yard drive, with Matt Asiata running in from 3 yards out to give Minnesota a 7-0 lead with 9:27 left in the first quarter. Matt Ryan and the Falcons answered, as an 11 play, 80 yard drive concluded with a pass from Ryan to White, who broke a tackle and ran 24 yards for a touchdown with 3:56 remaining in the first stanza.
Less than two and a half minutes later, Asiata ran in his second touchdown from 6 yards out to take back the lead. With just under six minutes remaining in the second quarter, Ryan threw to fullback Patrick DiMarco for a 1 yard touchdown to tie the game back up.
Bridgewater continued his magic, diving inside the pylon with 1:59 left on a 13 yard run off of a scramble, giving the Vikings a 21-14 lead. An 18 yard Blair Walsh field goal on the final play of the half made it a 10 point game at halftime.
Following another Walsh field goal, Devin Hester took a Ryan pass 36 yards for a touchdown to get within six with 7:19 left in the third quarter. With 1:31 remaining in the third quarter, Antone Smith took a handoff from 48 yards out to give Atlanta a 28-27 lead entering the fourth quarter.
On a 9 play, 78 yard drive, Asiata again found the endzone, this time from one yard away, and Bridgewater found tight end Rhett Ellison for a two-point conversion to give Minnesota a 35-28 lead. A pair of Blair Walsh field goals and interceptions of Matt Ryan sealed the win for the Vikings.
Bridgewater ended his day 19 of 30 for 319 yards through the air, and added 27 yards and a touchdown rushing. Asiata had 78 on the ground and three touchdowns, with rookie Jerick McKinnon rushing for 135 yards and receiver Jarius Wright catching eight passes for 132 yards.
San Francisco 49ers 26 (2-2), Philadelphia Eagles 21 (3-1)
After two weeks of failing to make plays in the fourth quarter to win, the 49ers finished on Sunday, defeating the Eagles 26-21 on a day where Philadelphia’s potent offense was held without a point.
Philadelphia’s defense and special teams was dominant in the first half, as a three-and-out resulted in a blocked punt by Trey Burton that was recovered in the endzone by Brad Smith for a touchdown with 12:19 remaining in the first quarter. San Francisco got a field goal by Phil Dawson late in the first quarter, and then took the lead on the first play of the second when Colin Kaepernick scrambled to his left and threw to a wide open Frank Gore, who ran about 40 yards to complete a 55 yard touchdown pass.
Less than three minutes later, however, safety Malcolm Jenkins intercepted Kaepernick and returned it 53 yards for a score, giving the Eagles a 14-10 lead. Just over three minutes later, a defensive stop by Philadelphia led to a punt that was brought 82 yards for a score by Darren Sproles to make it 21-10.
In the final minute of the half, Dawson hit a 51 yard field goal to cut the lead to 8. A Zach Ertz fumble gave San Francisco the ball at the Eagles’ 23 yard line was capitalized on when Kaepernick scrambled and found receiver Stevie Johnson for a toe-tapping catch with 8:06 left in the third quarter to get it to 21-10.
Two more Dawson field goals gave the 49ers a 26-21 lead over Philadelphia with just over six and a half minutes remaining. The Eagles drove to the San Francisco 1 with two minutes remaining, but two incomplete passes by Nick Foles on 3rd and 4th down ended Philadelphia’s best chance to win it.
Kaepernick was 17 of 30 for 218 yards, two touchdowns an interception, with Gore finishing with 174 yards of total offense, 119 on the ground. Foles struggled mightily with pressure, ending 21 of 43 for 195 yards and two interceptions, and Pro Bowl RB LeSean McCoy’s struggles continued, as he only had 17 yards rushing.
Kansas City Chiefs 41, New England Patriots 14
In front of a deafening crowd at Arrowhead Stadium, the Chiefs dominated the Patriots 41, 14.
With just over two minutes remaining in the first quarter, a now healthy Jamaal Charles ran the ball into the endzone from two yards out to end an 11 play, 73 yard drive to make it 7-0. Charles doubled Kansas City’s lead with a 5 yard touchdown catch from Alex Smith with just under 11 minutes left in the second quarter.
A 22 yard field goal from Cairo Santos on the final play of the half gave the Chiefs a 17-0 lead at halftime. The defensive onslaught for Kansas City continued in the second half, as the Patriots second possession ended in Tamba Hali strip-sacking Tom Brady and recovering the ball at New England’s 9 yard line.
A great return back to the field for Charles continued, as two plays after the Hali recovery, Charles caught a pass on a quick out route and went in for his third touchdown of the game from 8 yards out with just under 8 minutes left in the third quarter. Following another Santos field goal, Brady hit receiver Brandon LaFell on a quick slant, and he broke a pair of tackles to score from 44 yards out to make it 27-7 with 3:26 left in the third quarter.
But the Chiefs would end New England’s hopes in the fourth, as Smith found tight end Travis Kelce for a two yard touchdown with just under 12 minutes left in the game. Less than a minute and a half later, Brady was intercepted by safety Hussain Abdullah, who returned the pick 39 yards for a touchdown to increase the lead to 41-7.
Brady was benched for rookie Jimmy Garoppolo who threw a garbage time touchdown to tight end Rob Gronkowski. Smith was efficient for Kansas City, finishing 20 of 26 for 248 yards and three touchdowns, and had great help from Charles, who ran from 92 yards and a touchdown, along with Knile Davis’ 107 yards on the ground.
Kelce also had 8 catches for 91 yards and a touchdown, greatly besting Gronkowski’s two grabs for 31 yards. Brady was 14 of 23 for 159 yards, a touchdown, two interceptions, and a lost fumble.
Don’t miss a minute of the action! Subscribe to the Pro Player Insiders newsletter for exclusive content, VIP invites and special access delivered right to your inbox.
